Godly By The Minute
by I Am The Wind
Summary: When Max finds an expiration date on her neck, her already screwed-up world is flipped on its axis. And when the flock kicks her out, that only makes it worse. What will happen when she flies to New York? And who is she really? And what's all this crazy talk about 'gods? Temporary Hiatus.
1. WTF

Quick -summary: max wakes up one morning with a date on her neck- an expiration tattoo. What will the flock do to her? Where will she go? There are many surprises in store for max, especially when it comes to her heritage…

**Max POV**- Chapter 1

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I yawned loudly, stretching my arms above my head. Ready for another gorgeous, sunny day at the E house…I sprang out of bed and pulled the curtains back. Sunlight flooded my room, making me squint slightly to see outside. A smile spread across my face as I took in the view- vast, rolling hills, sharp, jagged mountains covered in snow…and ourmeadow, filled with flowers. I scratched at my neck absentmindedly as I walked to the bathroom to take a shower. Already the sounds of the flock were floating through the air- gettin' poetic, ain't I?

After my heavenly shower, I toweled off my hair and face and turned my back to the mirror. Wrapped only in my towel, I dashed out and grabbed my customary tank-top and shorts, then slipped back into the washroom. Already I heard the noise of Iggy cooking. Sigh. Bacon for breakfast….I'd have to put in a request. Max says: Every morning for the next month bacon.

I was pulling on my shorts (jean cutoffs) and tank (turquoise) when I saw it. Black print on the back of my neck, with a bar code underneath. CRAP_! _ I cursed. In the mirror, my face had gone pale. NOOOOOO_! _I twisted this way and that, desperately trying to get a closer look at my- gulp, scream, KICK, SWEAR!- Expiration date. I breathed in a shaky breath and told myself it was going to be okay.

Then I screamed. Into a towel, of course. What kind of an idiot do you think I am? Then I checked the date. And screamed again (into the towel, moron!). The date said July 14th 2012. Right now it was July 1st, 2012. Two more weeks to live. JUST TWO! I plunked onto the floor and stared at the opposite wall, gasping for breath. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. "Max?"

"Yes?" I whispered, and then cleared my throat. Fang would know what was going on as soon as I showed any sign of a complete breakdown.

No answer.  
"YES?"

"No need to shout. Come on, the bacon's ready."

I gulped. Again.

"In a minute" I called, then stood, not caring that Fang's voice sounded somewhat off. I gazed at my face in the mirror, then quickly let my hair fall around my face, framing my dark- and pretty hysterical looking- eyes. Anyway, it covered my neck, which was good enough. I swung the door open and marched downstairs. (I still don'tget that-why the heck to people say 'marched'? I mean, are we in the flippin' military?) Doing my best to look upbeat and...shudder...perky.

I followed the smell of bacon, allowing a small, depressed/and/or sad smile to appear on my face. On my way down I stopped by Nudge's room and pounded on the door. "GET UP! UP AND AT EM'! IT'S ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL, BRIGHT DAY!" I could hear her moaning for me to shut up, not bothering to care about why she sounded furious, not the normal 'just annoyed'. But I totally ignored that (as usual) and clomped past her room, smirking as I heard her tumble out of bed in her urgency to please me.

I guess I just have that aura around me…I snorted as I entered the kitchen. Ruffling Angel's floofy curls as I waltzed by (still, I wonder how I never noticed that she flinched as I touched her head)- well, strutted is more appropriate. I sauntered into the kitchen, snagged a plate and heaped it with bacon and sausages. (Iggy makes the best sausages ever!) I turned to face the flock, and sat in a chair.

I had just finished about half of my bacon whenI realized that everyone was staring at me. "What?" I said with my mouth full. Five pairs of eyes stared at me. Six, if you count Total's gooey brown ones. "What!" I yelled angrily after I had swallowed. Fang glared at me, his eyes harsh.

"Don't lie. Don't. Even. Think about it. We know that you are secretly working for the school Max. It all makes sense now. Why all the monsters are attacking us. Why our location is getting more and more obvious. Don't deny it. I know it's true." I gaped at him. Fang, who usually never showed emotion, was glaring at me, deep pain and hatred displayed on his face. "Excuse me?" I spluttered.

Then Nudge spoke up. "W-we know that you're evil!" she yelled."And that it's your fault we keep getting attacked! You've been telling them were we are!" After she'd said this little speech she gasped and took a breath, tears welling up in hereyes. But they weren't tears of sadness, but of anger and total disappointment. _In me_. Then Angel glared at me. "Get. OUT." She said with such venom and poison in her voice I swear it almost killed me. Was this really happening? I wondered. I turned to Gazzy and Iggy.

"Iggy…please tell me the truth. Have they been infected with something? If not, do you and Gazzy want me to go too? Even though all of this is ABSOLUTELY BULL?" I was angry now. No warning, no sign, and they just decide to kick me out of my own flock? I mean, WTH? I was starting to lose it. "WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?" I screamed. Correction- I just lost it.

"I HAVE DONE EVERYTHING FOR YOU! EVERYTHING! AND THIS IS HOW YOU THANK ME? MY OWN FAMILY KICKING ME _OUT_?"

I paused to take a deep breath and then released the air trapped inside my lungs. It made a sinister hissing noise as I released it. I opened my eyesto find the flock staring at me with varying degrees of anger. Then Fang said those fatal words. "Leave! This just proves it. You're unstable." But he wouldn't meet my eyes."You. Liar! You don't believe that at all."

I snarled, though I felt like whimpering. "Without me, you'd have nothing!"

"You haven't been acting like yourself, Max." Gazzy said softly.

"You were all quiet and scared this morning." I froze. Angel observed me coldly.

"Don't hide it. Now you're just dragging it out, Max." my hand slowly went to my neck and pulled my hair back. But I didn't turn to let them see…not yet. "You…idiots." I snapped. They focused on me. They weren't expecting this from me when I had just been told that I was to be kicked out of the flock. My so called family.

"You didn't even stop to think that I would have a reason for being quiet and scared? You didn't even stop to consider all of the possibilities?" I looked at their faces. They were confused. "You*Bleeeeep* this section shall be deleted. It could be considered offensive.*

After I finished cursing, their mouths were wide open. "Fine." I hissed."I'm not sorry, but you should know why I was all 'scared' and 'nervous' and 'quiet'." I pulled my hair up and spun around, holding my position for a few moments before letting it fall again. As I looked back at them, their faces stunned, I completely lost it. "You do realize that I'm the only reason why Dr. Martinez takes care of us? That I'm the only reason why the CSM even bothers with us? But here's what. Next time you cross me, I'll kill you. Have fun dying, losers."

I didn't care that Angel and Nudge had tears streaming down their faces, or that Fang looked like he was hit by a truck- Oh. My. Gosh. They had the nerve to cry. All of them, even Fang. All I cared about was leaving before I broke down. Tears in my eyes, I raced to one of the large windows- and flung myself out of it. Ha, I thought, Let 'em find a way to fix that! And with that, I broke the sound barrier.

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**2 weeks later**

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I wandered through the streets of New York, hungry and exhausted. I hadn't eaten in five days. I'd only managed to drink some water. I was dirty; my clothes were torn up from fighting. Monsters still followed me, and I had to fight them off to make it away in one piece. Every so often, a fresh wave of betrayal and pain would wash over me, and I'd curl up into a ball in and alley, crying- and in one particularly painful memory- screaming.

Finally, I reached the Empire State Building. I'd always wanted to see it again…and then I remembered my expiration date. Suddenly, a flash of anger shot through me. Why should I die at the mercy of an expiration date? I refuse to die in the gutter coz some idiot of a white-coat says so. I was gonna die on my own terms. I only had one day to live, anyway.

So I sprinted to Central Park. I found a secluded area…well it looked secluded. I found two guys and a girl arguing. The girl was really pretty, with long brown hair and ever-changing eyes. They all looked to be older than me, say by a year or two. The taller boy had jet black hair, olive-skin, and gorgeous dark brown eyes. I froze. He looked like a slightly older, cuter version of Fa- No. I wouldn't think of that name. Ever. The second boy was slightly shorter, with close-cropped golden hair, electric blue eyes, and a small scar on his upper lip. He looked a little bit like Iggy.

I stood petrified. My weeks of living in fear of dying had made me rather timid around people. I more resembled a wild animal rather than a person. The gorgeous guy noticed me first. He whirled and drew a sword. It was entirely black, but the hilt rested a silver skull with a ruby in its mouth. I stared at the sword then looked up at him, frightened. I gave a muffled squeak.

The other two had noticed me. The boy with the scar was now holding a gold-tipped spear, and the girl had pulled a vicious-looking dagger out of her sleeve. The dark haired boy advanced on me. _What has instinct taught you? _I thought. Right, small and scared. I pressed myself against a tree, doing my best to look seriously afraid, though all I felt like doing was kicking the freakin' sword out of his hands.

"What are you?" Oh my gosh, he sounded like an angel. I flinched, and his face softened. But then it hardened. "Are you a monster?" he asked. When I said nothing, he came closer. "Answer me." He snapped. The pretty girl put her hand on the boys arm. "Nico, she could be one of us. And she looks like she has no idea what we're about to do-kill her or leave her alone. Let's keep it simple- just ask her."

"Sorry." The dark boy muttered. He sure didn't look sorry. The girl kneeled in front of me. "Okay. We're not going to hurt you if you won't try to hurt us." Nico snorted. That irritated me. Have I ever told you how I have a helluva temper? It just kicked in. And I found that I could talk again. "Hurt me? Like you could." I snarled.

The girl took a step back, and Nico pulled his sword out again. "What" he said coldly. "You heard me," I hissed. "I am about to freakin' DIE and I get some schmuck in my face with a sword!" I yelled. "Wait, what?" The blond boy said confused. "How are you about to die?" I decided I might as well trust them, since they could see the monsters.

Other people didn't seem to notice. So I told them everything. The school, my life, escape, my flock, and…them kicking me out. I also told them I was a mutant, but I didn't tell them about the wings. I told them my name, what I thought could be my age, but when I got to the part where the flock kicked me out, tears welled up in my eyes.

The girl- Piper, as the others called her- gave me a sympathetic look. Nico (would he ever shut UP?) rolled his eyes. "C'mon, guys, this is bull. She's not a mutant." I lost it. Something about this boy made me go absolutely insane. And not in a good way; He drove me up the wall. "Yes. I am. I am not a liar, you ARE an idiot, and I can prove it!" I yelled.

Strangely, as I was yelling, the wind picked up. The clouds darkened, and lightning flashed. Jason and Piper stared open mouthed at the storm, while Nico pointed his sword at me. I dodged his sword, kicked him in the chest and hammered the nerve that controlled the arms. His sword made a 'clunk' noise as it fell.

Then, as he was lying on the ground, mouth open in shock, I spread my wings and jumped out into the sky. Suddenly, I collided with something. A flying horse? WTF? It hit me with its wings. On it was a teenager, a boy who looked like he was three years older than me. And naturally, that's when I get clobbering in the head with the flying thing's hoof. The last thing I remember was the horrible sensation of falling and screaming, and my world wend black.

**Nico POV**

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I hadn't meant to be rude (okay, maybe a little bit. So sue me. I was rude by nature.); I just found it totally unbelievable. But when the girl decked me and took to the air, my only thought was 'Oh my gods she's beautiful,' and 'she was telling the truth'. Maximum's (strange name…) brown hair streamed out down her back, and her chocolate- brown eyes determined. Suddenly, she was falling.

Jason jumped into the air, flying towards the girl who had stopped screaming a moment ago. I struggled off the ground, only just noticing the Pegasus that swooped through the sky, a young man with black hair and green eyes seated on its back. Percy, my kelp-headed cousin. I grinned and waved to him, and he smiled and waved back. The Pegasus- Blackjack- went into a steep dive.

I watched as Blackjack hovered to talk to Jason, who now held the unconscious girl in his arms. After several minutes they both descended, Jason in long bounces and Percy in a graceful dive. They reached the ground two minutes later, Percy leaping off Blackjack- and looking really, really guilty- and Jason finally stepping down onto solid ground. Maximum was still cradled in his arms.

He looked at me. "Can you take her?" I sighed, but nodded. She was not gonna be happy when she woke up. Maximum might actually punch me. I sighed again, and took her out of his arms and into mine. She shifted slightly and curled up against me. I could feel a blush rising in my cheeks, which was weird. I'm no stranger to girls. The female members of the Aphrodite cabin (with the exception of Piper) have given me the title of 'camp player'.

Nobody but Piper noticed, and she threw me a smug look. Rolling my eyes, I turned to Jason. "Dude, we still need to get to Olympus. I'm betting the gods don't want us to forget about that mystery item they made us steal." Piper groaned. "I can still feel where that *Greek cursing not typically used in polite company* kicked me. Next time I see him, I'll knock out his brains." She muttered.

"This had better have been worth it." Piper rubbed her side. Percy walked over to me and clapped me on the back. "Long time no see, cuz. I see you took Persephone's smart words to heart and got a girlfriend…" I rolled my eyes.

"No, Seaweed Brain. I just made friends with a mutant." I smirked as a dumb-struck expression crossed his face. "You've lost it. After all these years, you've finally gone round the bend." He half-whispered.

I smirked at his face, and then gently twisted Maximum around in my arms. I chuckled. Percy looked like he'd been hit by a bus filled with monsters, followed up by several trucks loaded with multiple minotaurs. "How?" he whispered, softly touching the wings.

"I don't really know for sure." I said, frowning. "But we have to take her to Olympus." Jason turned to me and raised an eyebrow. "Really?" I rolled my eyes. "Yes, lightning head. Did you see what happened when she got mad? A whole storm came out of nowhere. Not even you do that when you spazz. She must be really, really powerful, or that was just a really, really freaky coincidence."

Piper nodded. "Come on. Let's roll." She dashed off, heading for the park exit. I sighed and simply shadow traveled myself to the doors of the Empire State building, and waited for my friends to arrive.

**Nico POV**

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Just as Piper, Percy and Jason showed up Maximum started to move, moaning. By the time my friends were standing beside me she was shaking slightly, and her head was bleeding.

When we got into the elevator leading to the 600th floor, her face was covered with cracked and dried blood, and Percy was starting to look worried and seriously guilty, because a purple and black bruise the size of Black-jack's hoof was starting to form on her head. And once we had suffered through Stayin' Alive and arrived on Mount Olympus,

I had her blood on my black shirt. I shifted slightly and pulled her closer. She was really, really pretty… I shook my head and tried to think about anything but the feel of her hair against my skin, or her slight body curled up against my chest. They were nice feelings- Wait, stop Nico. You. Are. A. Player, and you have a reputation to uphold. You can also be really picky, and you have seen prettier girls. Stop it and focus!

The others walked ahead of me, talking animatedly even though Piper kept shooting me smug looks. I didn't get it. I walked behind them, going a bit slower since I was towing a winged- girl. Suddenly I stopped. Moron I was, I totally forgot that I can shadow travel. I did a mental face-palm and stepped into the nearest shadow. Ironically, it was the shadow cast by my father's statue.

I snickered as I emerged out of the blackness, right beside the majestic doors of the throne room of the gods. Percy, Jason and Piper were taking it slow. _Real_ slow. I rolled my eyes (it's my signature move) as they started moving in slow motion, cracking up the entire time. Once they had finally reached my side, we turned as one and the huge doors swung open.


	2. The Inner Aphrodite

Piper POV

Okay, let's just say that my inner Aphrodite mugged my normal self and took total control. I kept shooting smug looks at Nico. Hadn't I already told him to get a girl? I mean, really, he was starting to look like that 'forever alone' guy. No, wait, scratch that. He was starting to _act_ like that 'forever alone' guy. On the outside, he looked- as my half- sister Michelle had said- hot and totally available. Or, in Drew's opinion- delicious. Urgh, I mentally gagged. EW! Nico was like a brother to me, and in no way attractive.

I mean, Jason was already my boyfriend. But fine, if you want me to go into details…Nico was cute. Okay, hot. He had silky black hair that fell into his dark brown eyes, which had long lashes that really shouldn't have been wasted on a boy. He was really, really buff, with olive skin that glowed in the light of the braziers. (But Jason was still hotter)

Nico was even taller than Jason and nearly as tall as Percy, and no one had thought that that would ever happen. Okay, I ought to explain. Nico wasn't always this good- looking. At the party the gods had thrown to celebrate the end of the second giant war, Aphrodite and Artemis had had a massive argument, about how 'love is worthless!' and 'you insensitive cow! Love is what runs the world!' And finally my mom had lost it completely and had fired a bolt of pink magic at Artemis. But the goddess of the hunt had amazing reflexes and dove out of the way (Duh. Should have seen that one coming, mom). Nico wasn't so lucky. The pink energy hit him right in the chest and sent him flying into a small statue of- oh, the irony- his father.

Once we had dug him out of the rubble we had noticed something- he was a lot cuter. A lot. The entire Aphrodite cabin, including the goddess herself- was drooling. Of course, it was only the girls. Not the boys. Poor Nico didn't know what hit him. A few weeks later he had a run- in with the Greek goddess of youth. He mistook her for someone else and she was so deeply insulted she turned him into a ten- year old. He came to my mom bowing and scraping. Scratch that, groveling.

Finally she relented and put him back to normal (my mom is just that cool!). Well, tried is a better word. There was a side effect- he looked like he was seventeen, almost eighteen-ish. Nico hid in his cabin for weeks, but it still took several months for the demi-girls to give up on chasing him. Once he had rejoined the world of the living (a bad pun, I know) he had been really picky, but still a massive player.

Nico had never really liked a girl. But now…he was staring at the girl in his arms like she was candy. I couldn't stop a snicker from rising in my chest. But then i frowned...He better not screw up her love life. Percy didn't notice, but Jason cast a questioning glance at me. I nodded towards Nico and Jason grinned, making kissy faces. I giggled, and Percy stared at me, bewildered.

Then his gaze fell upon lover- boy and he chuckled. But as we reached the doors to the throne room –Nico was waiting for us- the smiles where wiped off our faces. Laughing in front of the council of the gods- a big no-no. Nico barely acknowledged us as we stepped through the doors beside him, but that was only to be expected, considering he only had eyes for Maximum (Strange name…). She moaned and whimpered in his arms curling herself into a tinier ball.

Nico smiled, and I smirked. Then silence. We walked up to Zeus's throne and knelt, waiting.

"Rise, heroes." We rose. "The gods thank you for what you did." While he was talking, my mom was eying Nico and the girl, a smug smirk playing on her lips. Mwahahahaha. I could feel the 'Awwww, such a perfect couple' vibes coming off her. Nico was sooooo gonna get a (Another) lecture about being loving, caring, and not ripping out the girl's heart and stomping on it. I snapped back to reality just as Zeus said. "We thank you greatly, for without you…we…er…would not be here."

The last part sounded like it was forced. Then the lord of the skies cleared his throat, his stormy eyes flitting over us. Then he did a double take and stared in disbelief at the girl in Nico's arms. "Hera, look!" the god breathed, sliding out of this throne and striding across the room to take Maximum from Nico. Hera turned pale. I guess none of the gods had been paying attention to Nico, as he had practically melted into the shadows. But now he was fully visible, staring at Zeus in confusion. Zeus didn't see our bewildered stares; he simply smiled down into Maximum's face. In a single, graceful move, Hera was by her husband's side; stroking Maximums hair out of her face.

"Um, care to explain dad?" Apollo said, eyebrows raised. He had even taken his ray-bans off. Oooh, he meant business. Zeus turned to face the other gods.

"This…this is our daughter," He whispered joyfully. Hera was smiling, but she was- oh gods, the queen of Olympus had tears dripping down her cheeks. And if that wasn't enough, even Zeus was looking teary. But that was nothing compared to the faces of the other gods, and ours. Personally, it was like being hit by a bus. Full of hell hounds.

"So, this girl is…a goddess?" Nico said weakly. Ha. Betcha he won't think twice about screwing around with her now. At least, I hope not.

"Yes." Hera murmured, smiling. "Maximum Ride, goddess and patron of mutants and mutations."

Athena furrowed her brow. "What? Father, mutations?"

The lord of the sky looked at her, the smile still lingering on her face. "Yes, mutations. A group of humans who believe that they are better than the rest of their race have been injecting children and other humans with the DNA of animals and plants.(Here he gritted his teeth slightly)They have suffered greatly, and many have died, but Maximum was part of a…Wait, WHAT?"

Jason, Nico, Percy and I took a careful step back. One moment Zeus looked really, really happy…the next he looked like he wanted to fry someone with a thunderbolt.

"Um, dad?" Hermes said nervously.

Ares was watching his father with a grin. "Lovely! He's so pissed!"

"How the Hades is that a good thing?" Percy snapped, while Hades raised a single, black eyebrow.

"I can hear you, you know."

Percy just rolled his eyes like, 'whatever'.

Jason stifled a laugh, but then turned to his fa-well, the Greek aspect of his father. "Dad, why are you so ticked?" he said bluntly.

"Because," -Zeus inhaled noisily through his nose- "Maximum was experimented on as a young child, but then she was freed from her prison by a man who claimed to be her biological father."

The god snorted, as though to say 'as if!'.

"She was then brought to a house in Colorado with five other children. After a while the man who freed them disappeared, and Maximum took care of the others. Then they were thrust into a series of challenging and difficult adventures, and Maximum risked her life for them more than once. But still, after all they had been through, as soon as they thought Max could be a spy, they kicked her out of their flock. That's what they called themselves for they all had the same ability- flight. They had all been genetically engineered to fly."

Well, that explained the wings.

Hera looked like she was going to set something on fire, and destroy half of the palace. "My poor darling! My baby!" And just then, Maximum woke up. Naturally.


	3. Mommy and Daddy

**Read and Review, my dear readers. Read and REVEIW.**

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MAX POV

I screamed. I'm not ashamed. You would scream too if a huge, bearded giant was grinning at you from above. I bet that you would probably wet your pants, too. Anyhoo, once I'd finished the screaming, I scrambled out of his weird hug and landed on my butt. On the floor. Yes, real smooth Max. That was the heroic part of ya.

"Who the hell are you?" I yelped, scuttling away from big an' bearded.

"I'm right here, you know! And I can hear you! I'm not deaf, for my own sake!" snapped a black haired man- oh god. Ohgodohgodohgod. The man was huge, and sitting in a throne made of a black…substance. Sure. That's what we'll call it. To be blunt, he looked like death. Long black hair, black robes that looked like they had pouting faces on them…hello, weird much? And his skin was as pale as though he'd just died. Huh. And I was half expecting eyeliner. Of course, that's when I noticed the fourteen humongous beings staring at me, with varying levels of amazement, irritation, awe (what? I'm awe worthy!) amusement, and from one- omygosh, he was HOT!- A quick smirk and a wink.

Then my temper clawed its way free. "Right." I said, my hands on my hips. "Who the hell are you and where the hell am I? If I don't get some answers right now I will pound the person closest to me!" I hissed, narrowing my eyes dangerously. I gave everyone in the vicinity my best death glare. I had just been kicked out of my whole world, nearly ran through with a sword, collided with a flying thing, and ogled by giants. I would do my best to wreak as much havoc as possible if crossed.

Suddenly, the bearded giant laughed loudly. "That's my girl!" He roared, and I stared at him.

"Umm…" I trailed off, staring at him in astonishment. "You're my dad?" I squeaked, surprised. I mean, come on, wouldn't you be? But really, first I get the crazy, blond director in Germany claiming to be my dearest mommy, and then Jeb. So who the hell was it?

"The one and only lord Zeus, king of the skies." He…er…thundered. No friggin' pun intended. I paled. Great, my knew daddy is insane. Ready for the funny farm. And actually, while we're at it, I'll go too. TAKE ME WITH YOU! Zeus frowned. "I'm not insane." He huffed.

Ooo-kay… "So, you can read my mind. Because you're God." I said, completely bewildered. The large people laughed. I breathed in through my nose to keep my cool, though I could feel it slipping away. I. Don't like it. When people. Laugh. At. Me.

"Darling, you've got your daddy's temper!" cooed a beautiful, brown- haired woman in a white silk dress.

"And I suppose that you think you're my mom" I said irritably. "Well…yes, actually." The woman sighed and looked towards the girl and three boys. Oh. They were here too? Great. Just peachy, oh the JOY. Not. Please, feel free to ignore my pointed sarcasm.

"Heroes, I expect you to ease her gently into this. Tell her everything. And leave nothing out, for if you do, she will probably make a stupid mistakes. Probably. Now go." She waved her hand, and my vision went black- again.

When I had my vision back, I was in an airy, white room. Marble pillars lined the walls, and huge windows- with no glass in them- were draped with fluttery purple, gold, and silver cloths. I did a quick three-sixty—yeah, the room was empty. Staggering to my feet, I gazed down at myself. Did I have all of my limbs? Yes. Was I wearing my old clothes? Heck no. I groaned as I beheld (don't ya just love that word?) my new…attire. I needed to find a mirror, and fast.

Okay, some of you were probably just stunned into silence there…because Max never, ever needs a mirror. Max doesn't even own a freakin' mirror. But I desperately needed to see what these wackos had done with me.

So I walked down the corridors on my little quest…AH! FINALLY! I reached—right, before I continue, I should probably explain the corridors. They were just like the room I had been in, made of light marble, and fluted columns, huge windows with fluttering curtains…Anyway…finally. I'd found a mirror, and it was huge. It covered an entire section of a wall. Then my jaw dropped.

What had they done TO MY FACE? I was wearing (gag) make-up. (EWWWW, GET IT OFF! GET IT FREAKIN' OFF!) I had a glittery, silver eye- shadow on, blush, foundation…mascara, bright red lipstick (that tasted strangely like pomegranates and cherries) and liquid black eyeliner. I must admit, I looked really good. And then my hair…okay. It fell in wavy silkiness down my back, and had ribbons of silver, crimson, and gold threaded through it.

My dress was long, white and Grecian- styled. It cut down low enough to make me embarrassed and it had a low back, letting my wings out. Gold gladiator sandals were laced half- way up my calves, and I had delicate golden shackles on my wrist and upper arms.

A heavy necklace made of silver, gold and red wire, diamonds, rubies and pearls rested on my collarbone (but did not even begin to cover the vast expanse left bare by the freaking dress!), and a golden circlet completed the look. What was up with all the precious metals? I guess the only upside to this was that if I got caught in a fight I could rip this stuff off and fling it at me opponent's head. Because Max is vicious. Rwarr.

I whirled when I heard footsteps behind me, coming face to face with that gorgeous Italian boy, Lico. No, Frico. Was it Rico? No wait, Nico. Just buh- rilliant. When he was standing in front of me, he smirked.

Finally, I glared at him and snapped, "Enjoying the view?"

Nico snickered and sauntered closer. "Actually, yes." His chocolaty brown eyes scanned my body and they rested...on my chest. Oh, the perverted sicko. He was such a..._male_. Powered by hormones. Urgh. And then I realized that he was invading precious personal space. Oh dear. You know, he really did look like F-No. They looked nothing alike. Except for, I don't know, the skin, the cheekbones, the long eyelashes, the midnight black hair. But I was snapped out of my rather painful revelation when I felt his hand slide up my arm.

Then rest on my shoulder, and continue up and begin stroking my...neck. Alright, I though dazedly. That was fine by m-Wait, no! It shouldn't be-but all of my objections flew out the large windows when he leaned down, his lips brushing against mine lightly. Then, "I love what Aphrodite did to you," He murmured seductively. Oh, sweet mother of mercy.

HELP! The some-what rational part of my brain was yelling at me, _Aphrodite? As in the Greek goddess of love and beauty? WTF? WTH? WTF?_ However, that part was remorselessly squashed by the rest of me, which was practically begging Nico to just kiss me. And possibly make out with me. Yes, I know, this is definitely not normally Maximum Ride behavior, but could you blame me? Well, probably, but what the hey. YOLO, people. And just then his lips met mine.


	4. Brain Sludge

**Hello, dearest readers. As you can see, I have finally updated this story. I apologize for the wait, but it was only to be expected seeing as how i was completely immersed in the lovely stories that grace this site.  
**

**Disclaimer: Do i look old? NO. Do i sound old? Heck no. Then please do not believe that I am RR or JP. Because I am female! Not over forty years old and married. Soooo, read and enjoy.**

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**Max POV**

I melted. Right then and there. My legs turned to pudding, and my brain to mush. Nico had slipped one arm around my waist, his hand resting on my hip. The other hand was tangled in my ribbon-threaded hair.

'Oh, jeez…' I thought dazedly, as the kiss turned into 'French'. Somehow my arms came up and twined themselves around his neck. At first I'd been all: Okay, I'm just doing this so I can unexpectedly choke the life out of him while he-And then the kiss went to 'French'.

Yeah…. call me immature, but I'm Max. Warrior Max. Warrior Max does not describe French kissing. That sure as hell wasn't what I was going to do. The more rational part of me was screaming at me, telling me that I hardly knew this guy. In fact, I'd nearly knocked him unconscious. Not the greatest meeting ever. But the rest of me (the part completely floored by his kissing…erm…expertise) flattened it.

I was so, so glad that my Voice wasn't making an appearance right now…just as I was about to die (extensive brain damage) Nico pulled back. When I looked up at his flushed face, he smirked at me (seemed to be his signature thing, no?) and pushed several strands of my hair out of my blushing face. Now I know what you're thinking…any hot guy could just walk up to me and start a make-out session and I'd be completely okay with it.

NOooooo. It's just that…when Nico touched me (not like that, you perverts! Minds out of the gutter!) it felt right. Complete. Then I became aware of our position. My back was pressed against the wall, and his hands were tight on my hips. My arms were threaded around his neck, and his deep brown pools of death were staring right into mine. If possible, I blushed an even deeper red. Oh, the joy. Fire engine coming through. Then his lips (which were totally kissable, let me tell you!) parted and he whispered, "I'm still waiting for my apology."

And those were the magic words. My senses came back to me, and I realized—previously, this guy had acted like he hated my guts. And I'd practically made out with him. Anger (more at myself than him, though.) flooded through me. I tried to escape but I... couldn't?!

(Mental sigh- I cannot believe I'm saying this) This guy was too strong. Even for me, a genetically enhanced bird kid. Nico (who had seemed to notice that I had every intention of trying to kill him, and most definitely not apologize to him for knocking him down!) proceeded to wrap his muscular arms around me (I almost fangirled!), crushing me against him.

His hands brushed my wings, and I shivered. I shoved my hands against his chest only succeeding in minimal space increase. Well, this sucked. I was about to kick him where the freakin' sun doesn't shine, when his lips brushed my ear, and my heart kicked into high gear. Wow. That rhymed. I struggled for breath. "I'm definitely not going to…apologize…to you."

Nico snickered. "What a shame." He hissed, and just as his lips (his heavenly, soft lips, perfectly capable of reducing me to a puddle) footsteps sounded around the corner. Instantly he was gone, stepping into the nearest shadows. Nico winked at me before disappearing. I shot the pools of black shadow by the windows my best death glare, which would have petrified an Eraser. Lovely.

My fingers touched my lips, which were still tingling. I whirled as I heard a feminine voice. "C'mon, Maximum." It was that girl, Piper. The gorgeous one with the cool hair. She gave me a smile. "Let's go meet the gods. Properly, this time." Then she turned on her heel and walked down the long hall. With my fingers still at my (and yeah, they were still tingling) lips, I followed her. Towards my 'daddy' and 'mommy'.

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**Please, my darlings, review. I hope that you enjoyed it and that you will continue following Max's new adventure. **

**REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! and to those of you who only click 'favourite' or 'follow' without reviewing...you know who you are, and you should feel ASHAMED! so please...review.  
**

**Until next time, **

**Booklover526**

**XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO  
**


	5. Goddess

**Please, I hope that you enjoy this. I probably won't update for another week, though. What with school starting again. Luv you all, and thank you to those who reviewed.  
**

**MAX POV**

When I stepped into the throne room, everything was different. For one, the huge figures on the equally massive (and equally freaky) thrones were now silent, as opposed to their silly kiddy fight before. Yeah, I had caught on. They had looked more like gigantic, pissed off toddlers than the majestic gods they were supposed to be.

One of the figures (blushes madly as the realization comes- it's the hot one, with the gorgeous blond hair and stunning blue eyes) raises his eyebrow at me, and I hear a voice in my head. 'Oh, fine, toddler I may be, but I'm still the hottest.' I snickered, and he grinned at me. But then…my…uh…daddy motioned me forwards.

Slowly but surely (dude, that reminds me of a turtle- and I most definitely ain't a friggin' turtle!) I moved forward, keeping my eyes locked on my supposed father. Sweet mother or mercy, he was huge. Bigger than any NBA players, that's for sure. If he tried to hug me, he'd kill me. Big an' bad eyed me and sighed.

"I take it that the demigods haven't enlightened you." I stared at him. Enlightened? WTF? Where they all Buddha worshipers? He heaved a sigh. Again. Was I that exasperating? I sure hoped I was. I heard a dry chuckle come from the guy who was dressed in combat jacket, boots…actually, he was dressed in combat everything. When he caught me staring, he smirked at me.

I just rolled my eyes and he grinned at my response. The big guy slammed his hand down on the armrest of his marble throne, successfully getting everyone's attention. His big, gigantic, crush-you-if-it-lands-on-you-throne. Happy thoughts, Max, happy thoughts. Think POSITIVE! Hehe. Yeah. But Max doesn't do positive, 'cause it would so ruin her pessimistic shtick. "Maximum Ride!" He bellowed. "Do you know what you are?" I gaped at him. Was her serious? I mean, for real? This had to be some sort of sick joke. He (Zeus, was it?) glared at me.

"This is not a joke, daughter. Please pay attention." I eyed him cautiously. Ooo-kay… "We are the Greek gods. You see, they never really died or 'left'. The mortals believed in us, and so we continued…" He paused for dramatic effect, then eyed me and sighed. "This will take far to long." Zeus grumbled. "Here." And when he pointed his finger straight at me, a bolt of lightning came out of nowhere and collided—wait for it—with my head. For what felt like the bazillionth time that day, I blacked out.

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When my eyes opened, I realized that my super gigantic mommy was chewing out my super powerful daddy. I barely suppressed a snicker when my eyes took in the sight. Zeus was sitting in his throne, with a sheepish expression on his face, while Hera was leaning over him, howling words of rage. Things like,

"You bastard! Why the Hades would you knock her out?!" and "Idiot! That's what you are! I CANNOT BELIEVE IT! IF SHE WASN'T PARTIALLY YOURS SHE WOULD HAVE EVAPORATED!" and my personal favourite… "I knew I shouldn't have married you! I knew it! Mother always told me, but I can't believe I didn't listen! This is RIDICULOUS! THE NERVE! The only good gift you gave me was our children!"

When she screamed this, two of the gods—one of them being the guy in military clothes, and the other was a man who looked like he had just come out of a workshop; oily, dirty clothes, greasy hands and a huge tool belt, he didn't exactly fit into the normal description of a god. But he had a kind twinkle in his eye, and a grumpy yet gentle face—grinned widely. Hmmm...they must be the 'children'.

They seemed to enjoy watching their mom blow up. However, when I did a quick check-just to make sure I wasn't missing any important body parts, like my legs, arms or midsection-I realized something. A vast part of my brain was filled with a knowledge I hadn't had before. The stories of Hercules, Jason, Prometheus.

The legends about half bloods, heroes, godlings, but I wasn't one of them. I was the daughter of two gods. Two very, very, powerful gods. So that made me…the realization struck me almost as fast as the lightning had. "Holy crow!" I shrieked. "I'm a goddess!"

Dead silence. Every head was turned to me, including that of my self-proclaimed parents. The golden haired god face-palmed. "_Now_ she figures it out." For some reason, that irritated me.

"And who the hell are you?" I snarled. He raised an eyebrow. "I am Apollo." he said, and my eyes widened. That explained the laid back attitude. But it still didn't give him the right to give me crap. My eyes narrowed. "Good for you." I snapped, and whirled to face my parents. "Sooo...am I a goddess?" My mother-Hera, I had to keep reminding myself-nodded.

"Yes, dear, you are. You were born from me...and your father helped." She added the last part somewhat grudgingly. Zeus shot Hera a glare. Then he huffed and turned his turbulent, sky blue eyes on me. I realized that my eyes came from my Her-mom. But then I cut straight to the chase.

"Why did you let me go through all of that? The cages, the experimenting! If I'm your child, why didn't you keep me? Did you want me to end up like this?" I rolled my shoulders so that my wings slid out, and glared angrily at them. The other gods couldn't seem to stop gawking.

"Darling, we love you. When you were born you were the cutest baby ever!" Hera gushed. Then Zeus cut in. "Maximum, we had no choice. There were evil forces at work, and if we had kept you we might have lost you. We're sorry." A collective gasp from behind me...Apparently daddy dearest didn't apologize often. I was still curious, though.

"But why didn't you take me back? Why did you let me suffer? Why the hell couldn't you just destroy the guys trying to kill me all the time?" Hera looked close to tears. "We're sorry!" She murmured. "We couldn't interfere. Besides, hasn't this made you stronger? Aren't you grateful?" The last part was said by Zeus.

But When I thought about it...yeah, I was grateful. Not so much for the hellish nightmare of white coats and cages, but for the toughening. I was battle ready now, and would be in an instant.

I had proved myself so many times, even I didn't doubt my own abilities anymore. I was proud of what I was, and I knew I could take down anyone or anything standing in my path. So I was grateful. Even though I wished that they had been there, I guess they must have been watching me the whole time.

What with the whole 'Being a powerful god' and all. I grinned. But then my grin faded. "So who was ? Obviously not my real mom..." I muttered. Hera beamed at me. "She was my daughter...my other daughter. I didn't have her the way birth normally goes. I actually created her, using my essence and the DNA of a mortal man whom I found kind. So technically, she is your sister."

My jaw dropped. This was weird. Really, really weird. But also kind of cool, in a way. It was good to know that my real mom had cared.


End file.
